Editing Lord Mountbatten (section)

== Assassination ==
{{main|Assassination of Louis Mountbatten}}

[[File:Wikimania 2018 by Rainer Halama-0503 cropped.jpg|thumb|right|upright|''Christ in Triumph over Darkness and Evil'' by [[Gabriel Loire]] (1982) at [[St. George's Cathedral, Cape Town]], South Africa, in memory of Mountbatten]]

Mountbatten usually holidayed at his summer home, [[Classiebawn Castle]], on the [[Mullaghmore Peninsula]] in County Sligo, in the north-west of Ireland. The village was only {{convert|12|mi}} from [[Republic of Ireland-Northern Ireland border|the border]] with [[County Fermanagh]] in Northern Ireland and near an area known to be used as a cross-border refuge by [[Provisional Irish Republican Army|IRA]] members.<ref name="Time Magazine">{{Cite magazine |title=Britain: A Nation Mourns Its Loss |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,920606,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081003053535/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,920606,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=3 October 2008 |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |date=10 September 1979 |access-date=20 September 2012}}</ref><ref name=onthisday /> In 1978, the IRA had allegedly attempted to shoot Mountbatten as he was aboard his boat, but poor weather had prevented the sniper taking his shot.<ref>{{harvp|Barratt|Ritchie|1991|p=23}}</ref>

On 27 August 1979, Mountbatten went [[lobster-potting]] and tuna fishing in his {{convert|30|ft|m|0|abbr=off|adj=on}} wooden boat, ''Shadow&nbsp;V'', which had been moored in the harbour at Mullaghmore.<ref name=onthisday/> IRA member [[Thomas McMahon (Irish republican)|Thomas McMahon]] had slipped onto the unguarded boat the previous night and attached a radio-controlled bomb weighing {{convert|50|lb|kg}}. When Mountbatten and his party had taken the boat just a few hundred yards from the shore, the bomb was detonated. The boat was destroyed by the force of the blast and Mountbatten's legs were almost blown off. Mountbatten, then aged&nbsp;79, was pulled alive from the water by nearby fishermen, but died from his injuries before being brought to shore.<ref name=onthisday>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/august/27/newsid_2511000/2511545.stm |title=On This Day: 27 August 1979: IRA Bomb Kills Lord Mountbatten |work=BBC News |access-date=20 September 2012 |archive-date=21 January 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080121045317/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/august/27/newsid_2511000/2511545.stm |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=guardian>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/2008/aug/28/3 |title=IRA Bombs Kill Mountbatten and 17&nbsp;Soldiers |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=28 August 1979 |access-date=20 September 2012 |archive-date=17 May 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140517205342/http://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/2008/aug/28/3 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{harvp|O'Brien|1995|p=55}}.</ref>

Also aboard the boat were his elder daughter [[Patricia Knatchbull, 2nd Countess Mountbatten of Burma|Patricia, Lady Brabourne]]; her husband [[John Knatchbull, 7th Baron Brabourne|Lord Brabourne]]; their twin sons Nicholas and Timothy Knatchbull; Lord Brabourne's mother [[Doreen Knatchbull, Baroness Brabourne|Doreen, Dowager Lady Brabourne]]; and Paul Maxwell, a young crew member from [[Enniskillen]] in County Fermanagh.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/theroyalfamily/9950397/Queen-Mother-may-get-blue-plaque-tribute.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/theroyalfamily/9950397/Queen-Mother-may-get-blue-plaque-tribute.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |newspaper=The Telegraph |location=London |title=Queen Mother may get blue plaque tribute}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Nicholas (aged&nbsp;14) and Paul (aged&nbsp;15) were killed by the blast and the others were seriously injured.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/northernireland/9366701/Tim-Knatchbull-the-IRA-killed-my-grandfather-but-Im-glad-the-Queen-met-their-man.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/northernireland/9366701/Tim-Knatchbull-the-IRA-killed-my-grandfather-but-Im-glad-the-Queen-met-their-man.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Tim Knatchbull: The IRA killed my grandfather, but I'm glad the Queen met their man |work=The Telegraph |location=London |date=1 July 2012 |access-date=20 September 2012}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Doreen, Dowager Lady Brabourne (aged&nbsp;83), died from her injuries the following day.<ref name="harvp|Patton|2005|pp=14–17"/>

The attack triggered outrage and condemnation around the world.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://alphahistory.com/northernireland/lord-louis-mountbatten/|title=Lord Louis Mountbatten|date=19 April 2016|publisher=Alpha History|access-date=19 November 2019}}</ref>  [[Queen Elizabeth II]] received messages of condolence from leaders including US President [[Jimmy Carter]] and [[Pope John Paul II]].<ref>{{harvp|Seward|2015|p=79}}</ref> Carter expressed his "profound sadness" at the death.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8418150.stm|title=Files show US-UK tensions over Northern Ireland in 1979|publisher=BBC|date=30 December 2009|access-date=19 November 2019|archive-date=20 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220720205128/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8418150.stm|url-status=live}}</ref> The [[Irish American]] community was disgusted with the attack, especially since many American soldiers served under Mountbatten during World War II.<ref name="FWAF">{{Cite book|title=A Different Way to Win: Dan Rooney's Story: From the Super Bowl to the Rooney Rule|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JCgDEAAAQBAJ&pg=PT136|author=Jim Rooney|date=2019|pages=136–137|publisher=AMTZ Chiloé Publishing, LLC|isbn=9-7817-3340-4921|access-date=30 April 2023|archive-date=20 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230820143101/https://books.google.com/books?id=JCgDEAAAQBAJ&pg=PT136|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=The Financing of Terror|author=[[James Adams (entrepreneur)|James Adams]]|date=10 April 2017|page=155|publisher=Independently Published |isbn=978-1-5210-0362-6}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Irish America and the Ulster Conflict: 1968-1995|author=Andrew J. Wilson|date=1 January 1995|page=152|publisher=Catholic University of America Press|isbn=0-8132-08351}}</ref> Jim Rooney, son of [[Pittsburgh Steelers]] president [[Dan M. Rooney]] (who co-founded [[The Ireland Funds]] in 1976), recalled that:<blockquote>Mountbatten's murder shocked many Irish-Americans, my parents included, because they remembered him for the role he played in defeating the Axis. "It was quite sad because being in America, you were familiar with Lord Mountbatten because of World War II," my mother recalled. "It was a very sad time." But my father didn't give in to despair. "That didn't slow down [my father] one bit. It more or less gave him more energy," my mother said.<ref name="FWAF"/></blockquote>

Prime Minister [[Margaret Thatcher]] said:<blockquote>His death leaves a gap that can never be filled. The British people give thanks for his life and grieve at his passing.<ref name=nyt>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/08/28/archives/lord-mountbatten-is-killed-as-his-fishing-boat-explodes-ira-faction.html|title=Lord Mountbatten is killed as his fishing boat explodes: IRA faction says it set bomb|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=28 August 1979|access-date=19 November 2019|archive-date=23 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200723075853/https://www.nytimes.com/1979/08/28/archives/lord-mountbatten-is-killed-as-his-fishing-boat-explodes-ira-faction.html|url-status=live}}</ref></blockquote>

[[George Colley]], the ''[[Tánaiste]]'' (Deputy head of the Government of Ireland), said:<blockquote>No effort will be spared to bring those responsible to justice. It is understood that subversives have claimed responsibility for the explosion. Assuming that police investigations substantiate the claim, I know that the Irish people will join me in condemning this heartless and terrible outrage.<ref name=nyt/></blockquote>

The IRA issued a statement afterward, saying:<blockquote>The IRA claim responsibility for the execution of Lord Louis Mountbatten. This operation is one of the discriminate ways we can bring to the attention of the English people the continuing occupation of our country.&nbsp;... The death of Mountbatten and the tributes paid to him will be seen in sharp contrast to the apathy of the British Government and the English people to the deaths of over three hundred British soldiers, and the deaths of Irish men, women, and children at the hands of their forces.<ref name="Time Magazine"/><ref>{{harvp|English|2004|p=220}}</ref></blockquote>

Six weeks later,<ref name="time" /> [[Sinn Féin]] vice-president [[Gerry Adams]] said of Mountbatten's death:<blockquote>The IRA gave clear reasons for the execution. I think it is unfortunate that anyone has to be killed, but the furor created by Mountbatten's death showed up the hypocritical attitude of the media establishment. As a member of the House of Lords, Mountbatten was an emotional figure in both British and Irish politics. What the IRA did to him is what Mountbatten had been doing all his life to other people; and with his war record I don't think he could have objected to dying in what was clearly a war situation. He knew the danger involved in coming to this country. In my opinion, the IRA achieved its objective: people started paying attention to what was happening in Ireland.<ref name="time">{{cite magazine |last1=Amfitheatrof |first1=Erik |title=Northern Ireland: It is Clearly a War Situation |url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,948791,00.html |access-date=19 May 2015 |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |date=19 November 1979 |archive-date=10 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150210193552/http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,948791,00.html |url-status=live }}</ref></blockquote>

Indian prime minister [[Charan Singh]] remarked:

<blockquote>Here in India, he will be remembered as a Viceroy and a Governor General who at the time of India's Independence gave us abundantly of his wisdom and goodwill. It was in recognition of our affection for him, respect for his impartiality and regard for his concern for India's freedom that the entire nation readily accepted Lord Mountbatten as the first Governor General of Independent India . His drive and vigour helped in the difficult period after our Independence.<ref name="Singh 1992 p. ">{{cite book | last=Singh | first=C. | title=Charan Singh: Selected Speeches, July 1979-December 1979 | publisher=Publications Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting | year=1992 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qshHAAAAMAAJ | page=55 | access-date=15 March 2024 | archive-date=15 March 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240315063556/https://books.google.com/books?id=qshHAAAAMAAJ | url-status=live }}</ref></blockquote>

In India, a week of national mourning was declared over Mountbatten's death.<ref name="Moore 1983 p. ">{{cite book | last=Moore | first=R.J. | title=Escape from Empire: The Attlee Government and the Indian Problem | publisher=Clarendon Press | year=1983 | isbn=978-0-19-822688-8 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VwNuAAAAMAAJ | page=215 | access-date=15 March 2024 | archive-date=15 March 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240315063556/https://books.google.com/books?id=VwNuAAAAMAAJ | url-status=live }}</ref> [[Burma]] had announced a 3-day period of mourning.<ref name="The Service 1979 p. ">{{cite book | title=Daily Report: Asia & Pacific | publisher=The Service | issue=nos. 164-177 | year=1979 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QorGy_zuQCoC | page=25 | access-date=15 March 2024 | archive-date=15 March 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240315063557/https://books.google.com/books?id=QorGy_zuQCoC | url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2015, Adams said in an interview, "I stand over what I said then. I'm not one of those people that engages in revisionism. Thankfully the war is over."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/republic-of-ireland/gerry-adams-has-no-apology-for-lord-mountbatten-murder-earl-knew-the-dangers-of-coming-to-ireland-31237440.html |title=Gerry Adams has no apology for Lord Mountbatten murder – earl 'knew the dangers' of coming to Ireland |date=20 May 2015 |work=Belfast Telegraph |access-date=28 December 2017 |archive-date=28 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171228112252/https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/republic-of-ireland/gerry-adams-has-no-apology-for-lord-mountbatten-murder-earl-knew-the-dangers-of-coming-to-ireland-31237440.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

On the day of the bombing, the IRA also ambushed and killed eighteen [[British soldiers]] at the gates of [[Narrow Water Castle]], just outside [[Warrenpoint]], in [[County Down]] in Northern Ireland, sixteen of them from the [[Parachute Regiment (United Kingdom)|Parachute Regiment]], in what became known as the [[Warrenpoint ambush]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/opinion/news-analysis/was-narrow-water-probe-doomed-from-the-start-28719623.html|title=Was Narrow Water probe doomed from the start?|work=Belfast Telegraph|date=29 February 2012|access-date=17 July 2018|archive-date=18 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180718001503/https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/opinion/news-analysis/was-narrow-water-probe-doomed-from-the-start-28719623.html|url-status=live}}</ref> It was the deadliest attack on the British Army during [[the Troubles]].<ref name=onthisday />

=== Funeral ===
{{Main|Funeral of Lord Mountbatten}}
[[File:MountbattenTomb.JPG|thumb|upright=1.3|Mountbatten's tomb at [[Romsey Abbey]] in Hampshire, near to his home, [[Broadlands]].]]
On 5 September 1979, Mountbatten received a [[ceremonial funeral]] at [[Westminster Abbey]], which was attended by Queen Elizabeth II, the royal family, and members of the European royal houses. Watched by thousands of people, the funeral procession, which started at [[Wellington Barracks]], included representatives of all three [[British Armed Services]], and military contingents from Burma, India, the United States (represented by 70 sailors of the [[US Navy]] and 50 [[US Marines]]<ref>{{Cite news|last=Apple|first=R. W. Jr.|date=6 September 1979|title=Hushed London Bids Mountbatten Farewell|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/09/06/archives/hushed-london-bids-mountbatten-farewell-europes-royalty-turns-out.html|access-date=15 May 2021|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=15 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210515161934/https://www.nytimes.com/1979/09/06/archives/hushed-london-bids-mountbatten-farewell-europes-royalty-turns-out.html|url-status=live}}</ref>), France (represented by the [[French Navy]]) and Canada. His coffin was drawn on a gun carriage by 118 Royal Navy ratings.<ref name=iwmfuneral>{{cite web |url=http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/1060022140 |publisher=Imperial War Museum |title=The Funeral of Lord Mountbatten |access-date=28 January 2013 |archive-date=14 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130514075054/http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/1060022140 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Ceremonial Funeral of Lord Louis Mountbatten of Burma|url=https://www.commsmuseum.co.uk/dykes/mobfuneral/mobfuneral.htm|access-date=15 May 2021|website=www.commsmuseum.co.uk|archive-date=15 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210515161945/https://www.commsmuseum.co.uk/dykes/mobfuneral/mobfuneral.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> Mountbatten's funeral was the first major royal funeral to be held in the Abbey since the 18th century.<ref name="Range 2016">{{cite book | last=Range | first=M. | title=British Royal and State Funerals: Music and Ceremonial Since Elizabeth I | publisher=Boydell Press | year=2016 | isbn=978-1-78327-092-7 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Kn1FDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA304 | access-date=17 March 2024 | page=304 | archive-date=17 March 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240317064708/https://books.google.com/books?id=Kn1FDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA304 | url-status=live }}</ref> During the televised service, his great-nephew Charles read the lesson from [[Psalm]] 107.<ref name=iwmfuneral/> In an address, the [[Archbishop of Canterbury]], [[Donald Coggan]], highlighted his various achievements and his "lifelong devotion to the Royal Navy".<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/september/5/newsid_2499000/2499279.stm |publisher=BBC |date=5 September 1979 |title=On This Day: Mountbatten Buried after Final Parade |access-date=28 January 2013 |archive-date=1 January 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080101174021/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/september/5/newsid_2499000/2499279.stm |url-status=live }}</ref> After the public ceremonies, which he had planned himself, Mountbatten was buried in [[Romsey Abbey]].<ref>{{harvp|Vickers|1989|p=42}}</ref><ref>{{Harvp|Wilson|2016|loc=Kindle locations 33727-33728}}</ref> As part of the funeral arrangements, his body had been embalmed by [[Desmond Henley]].<ref name=christopherhenley>{{cite web |url=http://christopherhenleylimited.com/inmemoriam.htm |title=In Memoriam: Desmond C. Henley |publisher=Christopher Henley Limited |access-date=16 March 2014 |archive-date=14 September 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130914054346/http://christopherhenleylimited.com/inmemoriam.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref>

=== Aftermath ===
Two hours before the bomb detonated, Thomas McMahon had been arrested at a Garda checkpoint between [[Longford]] and [[Granard]] on suspicion of driving a stolen vehicle. He was tried for the assassinations in Ireland and convicted on 23 November 1979 based on forensic evidence supplied by [[James O'Donovan]] that showed flecks of paint from the boat and traces of nitroglycerine on his clothes.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/law-and-order/5995439/Killer-of-Lord-Mountbatten-enjoys-freedom-30-years-on-from-IRA-murder.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/law-and-order/5995439/Killer-of-Lord-Mountbatten-enjoys-freedom-30-years-on-from-IRA-murder.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Killer of Lord Mountbatten Enjoys Freedom, 30&nbsp;Years on from IRA Murder |work=The Telegraph |location= London |date=9 August 2009 |access-date=20 September 2012}}{{cbignore}}</ref> He was released in 1998 under the terms of the [[Good Friday Agreement]].<ref name=onthisday /><ref>{{harvp|Moloney|2002|p=176}}.</ref>

On hearing of Mountbatten's death, the then [[Master of the Queen's Music]], [[Malcolm Williamson]], wrote the ''Lament in Memory of Lord Mountbatten of Burma'' for violin and string orchestra. The 11-minute work was given its first performance on 5 May 1980 by the Scottish Baroque Ensemble, conducted by Leonard Friedman.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2003/mar/04/guardianobituaries.artsobituaries |department=Obituary |title=Malcolm Williamson |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=4 March 2003 |access-date=20 September 2012 |archive-date=27 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190427084729/https://www.theguardian.com/news/2003/mar/04/guardianobituaries.artsobituaries |url-status=live }}</ref>

On his death his estate was valued for probate purposes at £2,196,494 ({{Inflation|UK|2196494|1979|fmt=eq|cursign=£|r=-6}}).<ref>{{cite web |last1=Evans |first1=Rob |last2=Pegg |first2=David |title=£187m of Windsor family wealth hidden in secret royal wills |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/jul/18/187m-pounds-of-windsor-family-wealth-hidden-in-secret-royal-wills |website=The Guardian |access-date=19 July 2022 |language=en |date=18 July 2022 |archive-date=5 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230505032103/https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/jul/18/187m-pounds-of-windsor-family-wealth-hidden-in-secret-royal-wills |url-status=live }}</ref>